Charts Don't Lie: April 27

Weekly review of the Hip-Hop and R&B sales/charts.

We're still awaiting the albums of both Iggy Azalea and Future to enter the charts, but this week we've got two new entries coming from August Alsina's Testimony and Dizzy Wright's State Of Mind EP. August Alsina surprised us with his first major-label album nabbing a strong debut at #2, moving 67,171 copies opening week-- compare this to the projections for Future's sophomore album, which is only expected to move 45-50k. Future is an established artist in the game at this point, thus he should have a ready fanbase, but it's not looking like that'll be reflected in his numbers. Alsina is an r'n'b singer no less (they usually sell less than hip-hop artists, however, Alsina does have a street edge most r'n'b singers don't have), but obviously he had the right team backing him and the right promotion. Future experienced a hindered roll out with Honest, after the album went through title changes and many delays, so perhaps fans grew weary. Our other new entry from this past week, Dizzy Wright, did not do crazy numbers for his online EP, but 6,807 copies is nothing to shake your head at either. His fan support system is definitely being developed. Check back next week when we find out how The New Classic and Honest stacked up sales-wise.

1) August Alsina—Testimony: August Alsina had an almost surprisingly strong debut with his debut album, Testimony, released via Def Jam. The r’n’b singer is paving his own lane in the game, and he’s already got the fans to match. Alsina sold 67, 171 copies opening week. We’ll have to wait and see how this pans out longterm.

2) Jason Derulo—Talk Dirty: Another r’n’b singer atop the charts this week, with Jason Derulo’s new LP Talk Dirty. The project made its debut at #4 on the Billboard 200, having moved 44,374 copies opening week.

3) Pharrell Williams— G I R L: G I R L continues to hold on to a top spot within the 200. Mr. Williams comes in at #7 this week (a slight drop from last week’s #2 spot), with the album moving a solid 32,858 units. Total sales are at 304,376.

4) Eminem— The Marshall Mathers LP 2: Em isn’t an easy one to get rid of when it comes to the Billboard charts—in addition to his newest album charting, the mega rapper often has past albums charting as well. This week MMLP2 rises up to #16, after 24 weeks of charting. The album moved 16,498 copies with total sales at 2,069,605.

5) Nas— Illmatic: With the 20-year anniversary of Nas’ classic debut Illmatic having just passed, it may not come as a surprise that the LP has re-entered the Billboard 200. Illmatic re-enters the charts this week at #18, moving 14,987 units. The total sales are 1,686,232. Are those numbers surprising?

6) YG— My Krazy Life: YG has been quite successful with his debut effort, predominantly produced by DJ Mustard, My Krazy Life. The album was pushed down a bit this week, coming in at #27 from last week’s #18. The Bompton native sold 11,000 units while his total sales rised to 123,000.

7) Rick Ross— Mastermind: The self-proclaimed Mastermind dropped over 10 spots this week coming in at #31. It’s not looking like Mastermind will hold on in the long run, as the rapper has only spent 7 weeks on the charts. This week Rozay sold 11,000 units while his total sales are 321,000.

8) ScHoolboy Q— Oxymoron: ScHoolboy Q finds himself capping off the top 50 of the Billboard 200, coming in at #50 exactly. The Black Hippy counterpart fell from #38 last week, but still sold 7,500 units with total sales of 230,000.

9) Dizzy Wright— State Of Mind EP: Dizzy Wright delivered his State Of Mind EP to fans on April 15th, and this week we find it enter the Billboard 200, proving the fans came through. The independent rapper was able to sell 6,807 copies opening week, debuting at #54.

10) Childish Gambino— Because The Internet: Donald Glover’s latest album saw quite a spurt up the charts this week, rising from #135 up to #55. After 19 weeks, the comedian/rapper sold 6,800 copies of Because The Internet, with total sales of 257,000.

Although Beyonce isn't mentioned above, her self-titled album continues to make a dent, with sales of 11,000 this week, and a chart spot at #29. Drake has dropped this week, with Nothing Was The Same coming in at #65 from last week's #47-- total sales are 1,540,000. Kendrick Lamar's GKMC is still present on the charts, although he fell from #91 to #93 this week. The Young Money album Rise Of An Empire continues its fast-paced descent to the bottom of the Billboard 200, coming in at #99 this week.